Chemeketa is governed by our Board of Education comprised of seven officials elected from geographic districts in our region. They hire and direct the district president on matters of college policy. Chemeketa Community College is a community college located in the unincorporated community of Hayesville, Oregon, near Salem, United States, with a campus in McMinnville and education centers in Dallas, Brooks, and Woodburn, and the Northwest Wine Studies Center in Eola. Chemeketa serves nearly 30,000 students each year in a district that covers 2,600 square miles (6,700 km2) in Marion, Polk, most of Yamhill, and part of Linn counties. Chemeketa's history began in 1952, when the Salem School District started the Salem Technical-Vocational School to provide training for the unemployed. Two programs, Nursing and Electronics, were offered and were occupied in the school at the corner of 3rd and Gerth St. NW. In 1957, student records were lost in a fire at the district office. In 1969 the college district was formed, and a competition was held to name the new college. The winning entry came from dental assisting student Susan Blum, who wrote in her submission that the term "Chemeketa" means "a peaceful gathering place" in the language of the Kalapuya tribe. In December 1969, the Board of Education approved the name Chemeketa Community College. Property was purchased off Lancaster Street and the current Building 22 was the first official building.